Eczema now biggest skin disease in children

A survey of 123 dermatologists carried out by the British Skin Foundation found that 88 per cent believed childhood eczema had increased over the past three years to reach a “problematic scale”.

It comes after an international study found that levels of the condition in Britain, which leaves young sufferers with dry and itchy rashes, are among the highest in the world and that being breastfed does not provide protection as previously thought.

Prof Hywel Williams, a spokesman for the charity, said: “We have to be aware that the increase in childhood eczema may be a reflection of changes in referral patterns or increased awareness in the population. However, the increases in eczema suggested in this BSF survey support what was found in half a million children participating in the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC), which suggests that eczema appears to be on the increase worldwide, especially in younger children.

“Why eczema should be increasing is not so clear, and such changes over a short time cannot be explained purely by genetics. The changes cannot be explained by any known single environmental risk factor for eczema, and it is possible that increased susceptibility to sensitisation due to early life events plus increased disruption of the baby’s skin barrier from cleansing products is part of the story.”